The Definition:
Giclée (zhee-klay) - The French word “giclée”
is a feminine noun that means a spray or a spurt of liquid. The word may
have been derived from the French verb “gicler” meaning “to
squirt”. This is what the inks do when they coat the paper or canvas
with pigment.

The Term:
The term “giclée print” denotes an elevation in printmaking
technology. Images can be generated from many different methods. They can
be original digitally created art works using computer software, high resolution
digital scans or photographic capturing. Once the image is ready, it is
printed with archival quality inks onto various medias including canvas,
fine art, and photo-base paper. The giclée printing process provides
better colour accuracy than other means of reproduction.

The Process:
Giclée prints are created typically using professional ink-jet printers.
Digital Print Studio uses the latest large format printers from Epson. These
printers are capable of producing incredibly detailed prints for both the
fine art and photographic markets. The inks used are specially formulated
so that the fine print heads can spray jets of ink in minute droplets at
a resolution of 2880 dpi. The media that is printed on to has a specially
formulated coating allowing a much high colour desity and detail. Digital
Print Studio will test and use other uncoated media if required.
Giclée prints are sometimes mistakenly referred to as Iris prints,
which are 4-Colour ink-jet prints from a printer pioneered in the late 1970s
by Iris Graphics, this however is not the case Giclée uses 7,8 or
12 Colours. It also differs from the traditional off-set lithographic prints
artists have traditionally used to reproduce their works, giving a much
truer look to the original. The technology works at a much higher resolution
not requiring bit-mapping (pixilation) resulting in nearly flawless colour
representation and seamless transitions (traces of the production process
are virtually invisible).

The Advantages:
Giclée prints are advantageous to artists who do not find it feasible
to mass produce their work, but want to reproduce their art as needed, or
on-demand. Once an image is digitally archived, additional reproductions
can be made with minimal effort and reasonable cost. The prohibitive up-front
cost of mass production for an edition is eliminated. Archived files will
not deteriorate in quality as negatives and film inherently does. Another
advantage of giclée printing is that digital images can be reproduced
to almost any size and onto various media, giving the artist enormous scope
to the artist or photographer.

The Quality:
The visual quality of the print is extremely high and the colour saturation
and definition stunning, rivaling traditional silver-halide and gelatin
printing processes. When prints are produced on good quality paper, the
print can have a light- fast life expectancy of 100 to 200 years, comparable
or better than other collectible artwork and therefore commonly found in
museums, art galleries, and photographic galleries.